focus this morning, Romans 5, verses 1 and 2. Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom also we have access by faith into this grace in which we stand and rejoice in hope of the glory of God. Therefore, having been justified or to use the word order in the original language, having been justified, therefore. Can you say that with me? Having been justified, therefore. Now, you've got to give therefore the right oomph, OK? So let's try it again. Having been justified, therefore. Perhaps you have figured it out already, but justification is probably my favorite word in the Bible. At one point before I went to seminary, I considered becoming an attorney. I know that will put doubts in the mind of all of you except Al about me. But I did that, specifically, this was back when Jimmy Carter was president. And those of you that think it's bad now, it was bad then. And particularly with regard to our religious liberties. And I thought about going to law school to try to be a part of defending our religious liberties. And maybe the idea of justification appeals to that legal part of me. Because justification is a legal term. It's the act of a judge. It means to declare righteous. Think about it. In Revelation chapter 20, we're told that God is keeping books. I don't know if I have just a page in one of those books or whether there's an entire book or more of me. I don't know. I want you to think for a minute about your page in that book. What would your page or my page in that book look like? in a word, sin. We are shot through with sin. Everything we do, if it's not the deed that is sinful, then it is the word that is accompanying that deed that is sinful. If it's not the word then it is the thought that is sinful. If it's not the thought that's sinful, then it's the attitude that is sinful. If it's not the attitude that's sinful, it's the motive that's sinful. If it's not the motive that's sinful, then again, it's the deed. It goes round and round. We are shot through with sin. There's nothing that we do that isn't tainted with sin. Now, compare that record with the record of the Lord Jesus Christ. His record is perfect. Perfect righteousness. Every deed, every word, every thought, every attitude, every motive, Jesus was the only human being that ever walked on the face of the earth who could say, I have done all my Father's will. And in fact, it's not just the amount of righteousness we're talking about, it's the kind of righteousness. Jesus has a kind of righteousness that none of us can have. The Apostle Paul calls it in Romans chapter 3, God kind of righteousness. You know, with the hyphens. God hyphen kind, hyphen of, hyphen a. Righteousness. Can you say it with me? Real quick. God kind of righteousness. Now, when God justifies us, two things happen. First of all, God takes what's on my page. God takes what's on your page. And He puts that on Christ's record. And Christ dies to pay the penalty for that sin. Christ did not die for His own sin. He was sinless. He was spotless. He dies. He died to pay the penalty of my sin and your sin. But it doesn't stop there. If that's all that God had done, simply put my sin on Christ, then you and I would be innocent, but we wouldn't be righteous. And we're not just innocent. We're not just like Adam and Eve were in the garden before the fall. God also takes that perfect God kind of righteousness from Jesus Christ's record and He puts that on our record. So that when God looks at me and God looks at you, if you put your faith in Jesus Christ, then He sees that perfect righteousness of Jesus Christ. That is justification. I remember the joy that flooded my heart, my life when I first understood this truth. When I understood I'm justified, my sin past, my sin present, my sin future, it's all been taken care of and the righteousness of Christ is mine. I loved Christ at that point as I never have. And I also began to think differently. I'm justified therefore. I'm justified therefore. Without knowing it, I was doing exactly what the Apostle Paul does right here in Romans chapter 5. One of the keys to living the Christian life to its fullest is learning to reason like Paul does here. I'm justified therefore. That word therefore is found again and again and again in the New Testament. Sometimes I think the secret of the Christian life is knowing how to use the word therefore. The Christian life in many ways is a matter of logic. It's a matter of deduction. Down through the pages of church history, the Christians whose lives have shone most brightly have been those Christians that understood the great doctrines of the New Testament and then could reason logically based on those great doctrines. They could say, I understand this, therefore. On the other hand, many of the great failures of the Christian life can be traced to our inability to use this word, to reason, to deduce from the great teachings of the New Testament. So in this passage, Paul uses that word, therefore, And he deduces three of the great consequences of justification. So what we're going to do this morning is we're going to learn to think like the Apostle Paul. We're going to learn to use that word, therefore. We're going to learn to think God's thoughts after him. Now, first of all, Paul says, I'm justified, therefore I have peace with God. I'm justified, therefore, I have peace with God. Now, by nature, we are the enemies of God. Now, that's a surprise to most human beings, because we don't actually feel hatred or revulsion towards God. There are some human beings that are bitter toward God, but I think that's the exception. Henry David Thoreau said, I am not at war with God, and most human beings would agree with him. This is also a surprise because many of us have heard the idea that we are the children of God, even though that's not a scriptural idea. You see, what the scripture says, it says in Romans chapter 8 that the carnal mind And in Romans chapter 8, when it talks about the carnal mind, it's talking about the mind of the unbeliever. The mind of the unbeliever, the carnal mind, is at enmity with God. The carnal mind is an enemy of God, Romans 8 says. You see, man is in revolt and rebellion against God. Whatever his feelings toward God may be, he has thrown off the law of the king of kings. He is an outlaw as far as God is concerned. He's the enemy of God's law. He's the enemy of God's throne. For he has rebelled. I like to think of it this way. Every human being has signed his personal declaration of independence. Every human being is fighting a war of independence against the throne of God. That's what we are by nature. Sinful man is the enemy of God, and God is the enemy of sinful man. And again, that may surprise many people. God is angry with the wicked every day, the prophet says in the Old Testament. Now that's not, that doesn't mean that God feels hatred or animosity toward mankind, or that God loses His temper and goes off on people. That's not the idea. I think as far as God's feelings are concerned, it's a little difficult to talk about God's feelings. But if God has feelings toward human beings, God is kindly disposed toward men. He sends the rain on the just and the unjust. It's rather that man has rebelled and broken God's law and justice demands that that disobedience to God's law be punished. God is the judge of all men, however he may feel, however kindly disposed toward men he is. And as a righteous judge, we've talked about this before, as a righteous judge, God is the enemy of every rebel human being. Every human being that has declared his independence and is fighting that war of independence against God, God is an enemy of every rebel human being. And so the question is, how are these two going to be reconciled? How can there ever be peace between an outlaw and a rebel and God, the righteous judge? Well, verse 1 gives us the answer. We have been justified, therefore we have peace with God. Justification based on the work of Jesus Christ is what brings peace between human beings and God. Because of what Jesus Christ accomplished in His active obedience And in His passive death for us, we sang Jesus' blood and righteousness. This is my beauty. This is your beauty. If you've put your faith in the Lord Jesus. This is what brings peace with God. That rebellion and the penalty on that rebellion fell on Jesus Christ. Justice demands punishment and God poured out that punishment, that wrath on Him. And so whenever a rebel human being turns in faith to the Lord Jesus Christ and he is justified, he then has peace with God. And so peace with God is an objective fact in the life of every believer. Based on the promise of God in Scripture, when a man claims that promise by faith, when he puts his trust in Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior, he is reconciled to God. It is a fact. But just because peace with God is an objective fact does not necessarily mean that we experience that peace in our daily lives. Some of you probably heard that the last remaining soldier fighting World War II surrendered in 1974. His name was Hiro Anoda. On December 17, 1944, the Japanese army sent Anoda, then 23 years old, to one of the small islands in the Philippines chain. As he was departing on his mission, his division commander told him, quote, you are absolutely forbidden to die by your own hand. It may take three years, it may take five, but whatever happens, we'll come back for you. Under no circumstances are you to give up voluntarily. When the war concluded less than a year later and the island was retaken by the Allies, Onoda continued in his leadership role, living in the mountains there of that island with three fellow soldiers. Eventually, one of those soldiers surrendered. The other two were killed, one in 1954 and one in 1972. leaving Onoda alone in the mountains. For nearly 30 years, he refused to surrender, dismissing every attempt to explain to him that the war was over. He dismissed all of that as a ruse. During those years, he killed some 30 Filipinos living on the island. For him, the war was not over, even though the peace had been proclaimed. Finally, in 1974, the Japanese government located a notice commanding officer, the guy that had given him the orders. They flew his commanding officer to the island and he informed Onoda of the defeat of Japan and that World War II was over. And Lieutenant Onoda emerged from the jungle 29 years after the end of World War II and accepted his commanding officer's order to surrender in full dress uniform and sword with his rifle still functioning and 500 rounds of ammunition plus a couple of grenades thrown in. He was ready to continue the war. Do you see what I'm saying? We can put our faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. We can ask Him to save us, to forgive our sin. We can be justified. We can have peace with God as an objective fact. And yet, for our part, we can continue the war in our hearts. Never experience that peace on a day-by-day basis. So again, I repeat, we must learn to use the word, therefore. I'm justified. My sin is gone. I have Christ's perfect righteousness. Therefore, I have peace with God. You've heard me say it before. It's fact, faith, then feeling. Can you say that with me? Faith, then feeling. The fact is that I have been justified if I've put my faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. If I truly believe that, if I truly put my faith in that fact, then the appropriate feelings will follow. And I will experience that peace with God. Let me talk to the guys for just a minute here. Guys, do you like to be in the doghouse? You know, you forget your wife's birthday, you say something thoughtless, and you're in the doghouse. You know what that feels like. I don't have to explain it to any married guy here. You unmarried guys, you have no idea. Do you know what it's like to be in the doghouse? You also know what it's like to go and humbly say, I was wrong. Would you please forgive me? And for there to be peace again. Now, after there's peace like that, why would you want to stay in the doghouse? And I realize this is a very imprecise illustration, but you get it, don't you? We have peace with God, and yet sometimes we voluntarily stay in the doghouse. We have this imagined case with God where somehow He's got it in for us. Peace with God. I'm justified. Therefore, I have peace with God. And it's not just that I have peace with God today and it will go away tomorrow. The verb here in verse 1, have peace, is a continuous action verb. We could translate it, we continue having peace with God. You see, that's the fact that assures my heart. It allows me to experience this peace day by day. It's not just that God is at peace with me now, but tomorrow He's going to declare war on me again. Because when God justified me, He took my sins past, present, and future, and put those sins on Christ's account. I'm going to blow it today. I'll no doubt blow it tomorrow. But I'm justified. Therefore, I have peace with God. Now this is difficult for us as human beings. There's nothing in our human experience like this. We've been at peace with North Korea. for decades. But I couldn't guarantee you what will happen tomorrow. I mean, we all see it, you know, on the nightly news. You know, they're launching this missile or that missile and they've got this premier or now his son over there rattling his sword. We don't know when the peace is going to stop, when they're going to declare war, what's going to happen tomorrow. But we're talking about something supernatural. Something beyond the human realm. We have peace with God. And we will continue to have peace with God because of the nature of justification. Because it is past, present, and future. Now, verse 2 goes on to describe a second consequence of justification. I'm justified, therefore I have access into grace. I'm justified, therefore I have access into grace. Now, I like the word access here. It can also be translated introduction. It's used of a person being ushered into the throne room of a king and introduced to his majesty. Such a person would have no access to the king without such an introduction. That's the idea. The story is told Years ago, the little boy who was visiting Buckingham Palace and he asked one of the, you know, the soldiers there with the, you know, the big hats and asked him if he could see the Queen. And he got the idea very quickly that he could not see the Queen. And he burst into tears. He was not happy. And it just so happened that 20-year-old Prince Charles observed the scene and came and took the boy by the hand and he said, come on son, if you want to talk to the queen, come with me. He was given introduction to the queen. That's the idea. Now, you need to understand that this is a step beyond having peace. with God. This is a step beyond having peace with the king. Simply because someone has peace with the king does not mean that he has access to his presence. I think about the story of David and Absalom. Do you remember the story? David's son Absalom had committed murder. He was outraged because his sister was raped. And so he murdered his half-brother who was also a prince of Israel. And then he fled from David's presence. He fled from Jerusalem. Feared for his life. And finally we're told David forgave him and permitted him to come back to Jerusalem. But he would not permit him into his presence. He forgave the penalty of His sin. But He said, He shall not see My face. But that's not so between the believer and the King of Kings. We were rebels. We were under the King's wrath. And because we have been justified, Through Jesus Christ, we now and always will have peace with the King of Kings, but the blessedness doesn't end there. We have access through Jesus Christ. An introduction into the throne room of the King of Kings. The Prince, not Prince Charles, but the Prince of Peace. has ushered us into the presence of the King of Kings and given us permanent access to His presence. Is this not wonderful? Once upon a time we were outlaws, we were rebels, and now we're friends of the King. We may come and go and converse and ask of Him what we will. We have access through Jesus Christ. That's why we pray in Jesus' name. We're coming into the King of Kings' presence based on the justification that Jesus wrought The verse goes on to call our position a state of grace. It says we have access into this grace, or we have access into this state of grace, or this place of grace. Now, grace is unmerited favor. So again, we've taken one further step. It's not just that I have peace with the King of Kings. It's not just that I now have access into His presence. I now have access into His presence and He favors me. Down through the centuries, there have been many noblemen who had access to the King. And He did not favor them. Not so with the believer. Because I have been justified. When God looks at my account, He sees the righteousness of His own Son. And so I have favor with Him. Did you see the words to that last hymn that we sang? A lot of great words in this one, but the ones that always get me is right at the end of the first verse. He as though I accursed and left alone, I as though He embraced and welcomed home. Not just peace with God. Not just access. I'm favored as if I were the Son. He hears our petitions and He grants us favors. That's what that word grace means there. Hebrews 4.16 says that we may come boldly onto the throne of grace and find help in time of need. This is the place in which we as erstwhile rebels now stand because we have been justified. And that leads me directly to a further point that we see here in verse 2. We stand in this place of favor. To stand in God's grace indicates permanence. We stand in God's presence and we cannot be cast out This is why Paul says in Romans chapter 8, who shall condemn us? It is God that justifies. I am justified, therefore I have this access into this favored position with God and no one can cast me out. I am there permanently. I stand in this place. Nothing I can do to improve that place, and nothing I can do to lose that place. Did you have your devotions this morning? Got in real good with God? Doesn't make any difference. It's not about that. I'm justified! That's what makes the difference. I have peace with God. I have access to His throne room. He favors me. And there's nothing that can take that standing away from me. I'm justified. Therefore, do you see it? Now, as we come to the last point, we see how this text flows from the past to the present to the future. Justification is past tense. It's based on what Jesus did, past tense, in His life and His death and His resurrection. If you and I have put faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, that's past tense. And then, present tense, I have peace with God, that's present tense. I have access to His presence, that's present tense. But there are blessings yet future that flow from justification. And the end of verse 2 speaks of these. We're taught there, I'm justified, therefore I rejoice in the hope of the glory of God. I'm justified, therefore I rejoice in the hope of the glory of God. Now, any time In the New Testament, we as Americans encounter the word hope. We need to step back and we need to remind ourselves of what hope means in the New Testament. Perhaps you heard of the teacher who said to one of her pupils, I hope I didn't see you looking on Harry's paper, Raymond. And Raymond says, I hope so too. See, that's how a lot of us think about hope. It's a hope-so hope that may not have a whole lot behind it. That is not what the word hope means in the New Testament. In the New Testament, the word hope means a confident expectation of future blessings. See, there's a parallel between faith and hope. Faith looks to the past. God has told us certain truths about Jesus Christ, about what He has done. Put those down in His Word. Faith gives us a certainty that those things are true. Looking to the past. Hope is no different. It just looks to the future gives us that same kind of certainty. It's not a hope so kind of thing. It's a confident expectation, a certainty of things that God has promised in the future. And get what Paul is saying. Because I've been justified, I can have that certainty with regard to the future. I'm justified therefore. Now here in Romans 5 and verse 2, that certainty, that confident expectation concerns our participation in the glory of God. The future that this hope is focused on is summarized in that phrase, the glory of God. Now, what is that talking about? When Paul says, we rejoice in the hope of the glory, what's it talking about? The glory of God. Well, I think we get some idea over in Romans chapter 8. So turn over a page or two to Romans chapter 8. And let's read verses 18 through 24. Romans 8, verses 18 through 24. Paul says, For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us. So Paul is describing this glory. And he says it's something that's going to be revealed in us as believers. He says, for the earnest expectation of the creation eagerly waits for the revealing of the sons of God. For the creation was subjected to futility, not willingly, but because of him who subjected it in hope. Because the creation itself was also delivered from the bondage of corruption into the glorious liberty of the children of God. For we know that the whole creation groans and labors with birth pangs together until now. Not only that, we also who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, in other words, we who have the Holy Spirit living inside of us right now, even we ourselves groan within ourselves just like the creation, we groan eagerly waiting for what? The adoption, the redemption of our body. For we were saved in this hope, but hope that is seen is not hope, for why does one still hope for what he sees? So, Paul is talking here, when he talks about the glory of God and the fact that we're saved in that hope, that speaks of the day when we shall be glorified bodily. When our bodies will become like those of Jesus Christ. When we will become like Him. Body, soul, and spirit. And in fact, the implication here is that not just will our bodies be redeemed at that day, but the entire creation will be renewed and redeemed at that day. But there's more here. It calls this the glory of God. Why is it the glory of God? that someday I shall have this new body and I will be like Jesus Christ and the creation will be renewed and redeemed as well. Why is that the glory of God? Why am I talking about us participating in the glory of God? You see, our glorification, when this happens, will be part and parcel of God finally revealing His glory. The way I like to think about it is this. God is finally going to reveal to everyone who He really is. That's the glory of God. Do you think that our world around us really reveals to men who God really is? In some respects, you have to say that David in Psalm 19 says that the creation communicates something of the glory of God. And yet, it's veiled. I want you to think about this. God created this perfect creation that perfectly reflected His glory. And He put a man who was perfectly in His image into that creation. And He called it, do you remember? He said, it's all very good. And then man sinned. And it all was ruined. The curse came upon not just man, but the entire creation. And I think a lot of us look around and it looks like Satan has won. Because it's all ruined. Man has been ruined. The creation has been ruined. And that's all we can see is the ruin. There's coming a day when it will no longer be ruined. There's coming a day when we again will be perfectly in the image of the Son. We will be conformed to His image. We will be glorified. And there will be a new heaven and a new earth. And we will never again think that Satan has won. And for the first time, it will be evident to every being in the universe just exactly who God really is. That's the glory of God. That's what we get to participate in and be a part of. That is our hope for the future. because we've been justified. I'm justified. Therefore, I have this hope. Sounds almost like a fairy tale, doesn't it? Outlaws Rebels against the good reign of God is what we were by nature. But all that changes when we are justified by faith. God and the rebels are brought to peace with one another permanently. But beyond that, these rebels are introduced to the king, given access to his presence. And they simply do not have the ear of the king. They have his favor. And they stand permanently in that place of favor. It cannot be forfeited. But it doesn't end there. For these former rebels have a glorious future with the King of Kings. In fact, He is going to display His ultimate glory in them. Wow! I'm justified. Now, I close with this thought. Verse 2 tells us that we don't experience that glory right now. It's a hope. We confidently expect it, but it's a hope. But it does say that right now, if we've been justified, we are to rejoice in that hope. And this isn't the normal word for rejoice, as it's used in the New Testament. This word means to talk of oneself. To congratulate oneself. To speak of oneself as blessed. My friend, this morning, if you have been justified by faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, then I invite you into God's presence to speak of your blessings. To congratulate yourself before God. for what He has done for you. See, we have a word for this. It's called worship. Where I come into God's presence and I rehearse what He has done for me. I congratulate myself. I rejoice and I pour out my love and my gratitude before that King. A justified man is always a worshiping man. You know, it bothers me when I see people who tell me they have a firm faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, but they won't participate in corporate worship. It doesn't make sense to me. Because if I see these realities, if I've grasped them, then I will rejoice. I'm justified. Therefore, I rejoice. I rejoice. So we're going to do that. Normally we just sing a stanza as we end a message. We're going to sing that whole song again. All three stanzas that's there in your bulletin that speaks of justification. Before we do, let me make one last point. If you're here this morning and you have not put your faith in Jesus Christ, then none of what I've spoken of this morning is yours. You need to be thinking, I'm not justified, therefore. Therefore, I don't have peace with God. I shall never have access to his presence. I shall be shut out of his presence in an eternal hell. And you need to come to Jesus Christ today. If you're here and you're not certain, in your heart of hearts, that Jesus Christ is your Savior, then today needs to be the day of salvation for you. Just briefly, can I have every head bowed, please, every eye closed.